Cat Links
Zoos in Australia & NZ | Zoos in other countries
Conservation | Other Big Cat Websites
Zoos and reserves in Australia and New Zealand
Auckland Zoo
I visited this zoo in March 2004 and thoroughly enjoyed the Serval Show and Lion Feeding. There was only one tiger when I visited and it paced restlessly back and forth across the back of it's steeply landscaped enclosure.
Australia Zoo
I visited this zoo in September 2004 and was astonished at its size and modern design. The Irwin's have made rapid and major achievements with this park and I commend them for their dedication to conservation. I enjoyed the tiger show in the 'Crocosseum' and I also stalked the handlers as they walked two of the tigers down one of the zoo's access roads. My husband literally couldn't tear me away.
Darling Downs Zoo
A private zoo located near Toowoomba, Darling Downs Zoo is home to bengal tigers and African lions. The zoo opened in early 2005, but has been in construction for a number of years. Click here to view some news about the lions that visited AGMF in Toowoomba.
Dreamworld
I have visited Dreamworld many times and I even had a Max Action Pass for a year. I love this theme park not only for its tigers and cougars, but also for the colourful, action-packed atmosphere. At least three or four of the tigers are always visible at Tiger Island and although they spend most of the day sleeping, the handlers feed them milk and encourage them to leap up trees twice throughout the day. If you happen to go in winter or on a rainy day, you will definitely see more activity because the tigers are not as sleepy when it is a bit cooler.
Hamilton Zoo
Located in Hamilton, New Zealand, this zoo features the following wild cat species: leopard cat, african cheetah, sumatran tiger and bobcat. I have never been here, but as the bobcat holds a special place in my heart, this is definitely on my list of zoos to visit.
Melbourne Zoo, Healesville Sanctuary and Werribee Open Range Zoo
Featuring lions, cheetahs, sumatran tiger, jaguar, puma and snow leopard, these three zoos are not to be missed. They are on my list of zoos to visit. A special 'Big Cat Complex' exists at Melbourne Zoo, including jaguars, lions, pumas and snow leopards.
Mogo Zoo
Mogo Zoo in Mogo, New South Wales has an impressive line up of big cats including african lions (and a white lion), bengal tigers, jaguars, servals, snow leopards and sumatran tigers. Mogo Zoo recently sent a sumatran tiger cub named Soraya to Dreamworld for its new sumatran tiger breeding program. Mogo Zoo claims to be the only Zoo that has successfully bred snow leopards for the last 16 years. The names of their two gorgeous yearlings are Tenzin and Khumbu.
Monarto Zoological Park
This South Australian zoo features a cheetah and possibly others.
Orana Wildlife Park
Including cheetahs, lions and servals.
Perth Zoological Gardens
Perth zoo houses three sumatran tigers, a male named Calang, his daughter, Setia and a new male named Dumai. The zoo also includes a 'display pride' (non breeding) of lions and one cheetah named Kitoko.
Taronga Zoo
Sydney's Taronga Zoo is home to bengal tigers, african lions, a snow leopard and more. When last I visited, it was raining and both the lions and the tigers were extremely active. The lions and tigers are viewed from 'underground' caves with glass windows that butt up against the enclosures. These provide an excellent view of the animals unless they are hiding right up the back. But with crowds of people in the room, it can be very noisy and claustrophobic. Photos are also a little bit difficult due to the volume of smudges and hand prints on the viewing window.
Wellington Zoological Gardens
Featuring two cheetahs four lions and two sumatran tigers, this zoo is sure to be interesting.
Western Plains Zoo
Western Plains Zoo, Dubbo, is an open range, naturalistic zoo with large troughs dividing people from the animals (no ugly fences). When I visited Western Plains Zoo several years ago, I enjoyed seeing the cheetah, sumatran tiger and lions all of which were most interested in what was going on across the mote. I even managed to get the lioness to 'chase me' from one side of its enclosure to the other. The white bengal tiger that was there when I visited was most unhappy, pacing through the mud at one end of its enclosure.
Zoos and reserves in other countries
The Exotic Feline Breeding Compound's Feline Conservation Center
A website containing news and photos of the compounds felines. Here is a bunch of people who genuinely care for the wellbeing of the world's cat species.
Conservation
5 Tigers.org
This excellent website provides a vast amount of information about tiger conservation. Along with a 1-800-5tigers information line, this site was created to provide the public, scientific, and conservation communities with an international forum for exchanging information relevant to the preservation of wild tigers across Asia and in zoos worldwide.
AZA
American Zoo and Aquarium Association
Asian Animal Protection Network
Tigers Bred for the Table
Animals Asia Foundation reports on a place called 'Tiger Mountain' where tigers and other species may have been bred for human consumption and illegal trade (1999).
Australasian Regional Association of Zoological Parks and Aquaria
This organisation
Born Free Foundation
An active organisation seeking to alleviate the suffering of captive wild animals who are being exploited by greedy and ignorant humans. Also click here for the big cat section of their website.
BIAZA
British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums
CBSG
Conservation Breeding Specialist Group
CITES
Convention on Internationl Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna
EAZA
European Association of Zoos and Aquaria
EFBC/FCC - Exotic Feline Breeding Compound's Feline Conservation Centre
Located in Rosamond, CA in the USA, EFBC houses an enormous variety of wild cats, particularly leopards and small cats. It is with thanks to Nancy Vandermay (the webmaster) that I have been allowed to use a lot of her images on Salvaje.
IFAW
The International Fund for Animal Welfare is an active organisation that began as a group of concerned local citizens fighting against the massacre of whitecoat harp seals on the eastern coast of Canada.
International Society for Endangered Cats
ISIS
International Species Information System
IUCN
The World Conservation Union
IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group
A group specialising in wild cat conservation and producing the biannual magazine 'Cat News'
Lynn Santer
Conservationist, writer, adventurer and star, Lynn Santer is a lady with a passion for wild cats. Visit her site for more information on her involvement in animal conservation. In a world of pencil pushing bureacracy, Lynn is a lady who knows how to take action!
PAAZAB
African Association of Zoos and Aquaria
The Phonex Fund
A Russian non-profit, non-governmental organization formed in 1998 to support and coordinate biodiversity conservation projects in the Russian Far East.
SEAZA
South East Asian Zoos Association
Sumatran Tigers
A website about sumatran tigers and with information and links to various conservation efforts.
WAZA
World Association of Zoos and Aquaria
World Wildlife Fund
A well-known wildlife conservation fund, WWF has a range of projects to save wildlife and campaigns to raise public awareness of conservation all over the world.
ZIMS
Zoological Information Management System
Other Wild Cat Websites
Big Cats Online
An informative website with nice headings, maps and images.
Hybrid Big Cats
A fascinating look at some of the strange offspring that occur when different species of wild cat are paired together.
Kella's Cat
A series of mysterious black cats have been found in Scotland since 1998 when one of these vicious animals was shot and dubbed 'a rabbit-headed cat'. This webpage dispels some of the myths about the 'rabbit-headed cat', revealing it to be a hybrid between dometic felines and wildcats.
A nicely designed site featuring information about many different animals, including some in-depth profiles of most of the big cats.
A beatifully designed big cat website with loads of information about wild cats, including hybridization, black, white, tabby and albino variants.
Wildcats of the World
This elegantly designed website contains a convenient world map you can click on to reveal more information about the wild cats of that area.
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